


Priorities

by Smallestgeek (Geektaire)



Series: Small Miracles [4]
Category: Les Misérables (2012), Les Misérables - All Media Types, Les Misérables - Schönberg/Boublil
Genre: Crying, Frogs, Petitaire, Temper Tantrums
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-30
Updated: 2013-12-30
Packaged: 2018-01-06 18:23:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1110096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Geektaire/pseuds/Smallestgeek
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are lots of things Les Amis have to learn when it comes to toddlers... the first one would be how to prioritize.</p><p>Or how Petitaire's tears are worse than Cosette's and how no one has any idea of what to do with a toddler....</p>
            </blockquote>





	Priorities

“Is there something more important to do at this moment Monsieur Enjolras?”

Enjolras clenched his jaw as he shook his head and pushed his phone back into his pockets, as the head of the classics department gave him a smug look. He hated her, it was that simple. Their bad relationship had started after she had chosen another artist's work over Grantaire's, even though his work was thousand times better, just because she had some kind of grudge against 'Les amis'. Because the grade for the class had depended on that choice, and she had left Grantaire's work in one of the last spots, he had failed and his scholarship had been revoked. 

Enjolras was startled as he felt Combeferre dig his nails in his thigh, “Stop glaring at her,” Combeferre muttered from the side of his mouth, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible about it. Combeferre, as usual, was playing the diplomat as they tried to convince the heads of departments and the dean of supporting their latest campaign. 

“What I don't understand,” the heinous witch spoke again, her eyes on Enjolras as if daring him to be his usual self and start yelling at her (once again, but that's a story for another moment). “Is what's the school got to do with this?”

Enjolras had started to open his mouth to answer when his phone started vibrating in his pocket, he ignored it and started to 'calmly' explain their reasoning behind their need for more funding. He was trying to talk them into submitting when his phone yet again started vibrating a couple of minutes later. With an annoyed huff he ignored it and continue to talk down the head of the departments when Combeferre's hand in his arm stopped him in his tracks. 

“I'm sorry, madam... messieurs,” he pushed Enjolras back almost forcing him to sit back down. “But I've just received an important message, there's been an emergency and we're going to have to reschedule.”

“This is incredibly unprofessional,” Enjolras started to glare at Combeferre as the head of the art department started to talk once again.

“We know,” he smiled at her, trying to keep it as real as possible as he saw her start to give in. “And we're terrible sorry, it's a family emergency and Enjolras is needed as soon as possible.”

“I'm needed as soon as possible?” Enjolras turned, looking at Combeferre like he was crazy. “Family emergency?”

“You would understand,” Courfeyrac muttered as he started to pick up their things from in front of them, “if you had read your messages.”

“It's alright boys,” Monseiur Bienvenue, the man at the head of the table said as he looked over at them with a small smile, “I'm sure we were almost done by now, anything else you can just forward it to my secretary.”

“But Sir,” Enjolras wanted to yell as once again the woman tried to talk over them. 

“I'm sorry dear,” he said as he moved around the room to shook the boys' hands. “But this boys have the right idea, we have to think forward.”

“We're thankful Monsieur,” Combeferre was pushing Enjolras out the door before he had a chance to raise his voice once again.

“What's wrong with you?!,” the blond said as he tried to get Combeferre to release him. “We were having one of the most important meetings in all of the school year and you pull something like that?!” He was starting to raise his voice, Combeferre just kept on dragging him away from the dean's office not caring that Courfeyrac was yet to follow. “The cause is everything Combeferre! I thought you, better than anyone understood that!”

“Are you done?” Combeferre asked as he finally stopped once they were at the building's door, his tone more exasperated than mad. Enjolras just glared at his best friend as he pulled his arm with more strength that was probably needed. “There's a reason why you have a mobile Enjolras,” he sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, “Cosette and Éponine have been sending you messages throughout the last hour, Grantaire,” at the name of their littlest friend Enjolras actually stopped scowling, looking slightly worried. “He's been crying non stop for the last hour, they don't know what's wrong with him.”

“Is he sick?” Enjolras had paled slightly before starting to walk towards where their apartment was. “He's sick isn't he? I knew the process wouldn't be completely benign, there's something wrong with him.” If Combeferre hadn't been as worried as Enjolras, he would have found his mutterings hilarious.

“It could be anything,” the philosopher said as he matched up the blond man's pace step by step. “He's a little boy, little boys cry.”

“He shouldn’t!” Enjolras stopped and turned to look at Combeferre, “R shouldn't be sad now that he's a boy, he's sad enough as an adult.”

It was really hard for Enjolras to surprise his closest and oldest friend, but he still did. Sometimes he forgot how much his friend cares for people, and the people closest to him being the ones higher in his list. “He's going to be alright Enj,” he sighed as he started walking behind the almost running leader. 

“He better be, he can't be nothing other than ok.”

The scene that they discovered once they finally arrived back home wasn't exactly what they had been expecting, but then after all it was the first time either of them had been around a three year old since they were three year old.

Cosette was sitting in their couch sobbing as she tried to keep her arms around a trashing naked Grantaire. Meanwhile Éponine was on a crouch in front of the two of them, trying and failing to make both of them stop crying. “Thank God you're here,” Marius said in a rush as he walked out of the kitchen, his hair in disarray and panic in his eyes. 

“What happened?” Combeferre asked as Enjolras moved directly to Cosette, not saying anything and taking the screaming Grantaire in arms. The boy continued to scream and cry, with his eyes closed tightly and they could barely make the words 'ras', 'gone', and 'petitaire' among his cries. Enjolras said nothing to the other 'grown ups' choosing to pull Petitaire closer, burrowing his own face in the boy's messy curls and seemingly whispering something no one else could hear.

Marius didn't answer as he continued to look desperately towards Enjolras and Grantaire, who had finally opened his eyes just a few moments after he had heard some of the words Enjolras had whispered only for his ears, threw his little chubby arms around Enjolras neck and started to quiet down to some scattered relieved cries.

“How do you do that?” Marius whispered as he started to walk towards Enjolras, stopping in his tracks for two reasons. The first one was the glare he was receiving from his friend, and the second one was the whimper Grantaire let out as he felt him approach.

“He's like the baby whisperer,” Éponine said from where she was now sitting with her arms around a still crying Cosette. 

“Could somebody...” Enjolras took a deep breath, giving Petitaire a small smile as he moved him to rest on his hip. “What happened here?” The toddler, with his thumb in his mouth once again, put an arm around the older man's shoulders before resting his head in the nearest one while his hands played with the hair in the nape of Enjolras's neck.

“Ermm,” Enjolras tried not to groan as Marius flushed red and started trying to form words. Their friend was socially awkward, and he knew that out of the three he was the most likely to have said something that could have been upsetting for the currently smallest, though probably not so current since Grantaire was the smallest out of them all, ami. 

“It was all my fault!” Combeferre raised his eyebrows as Cosette cried from the couch, starting once again to sob in Éponine's arms. Enjolras just looked at Marius, then at Combeferre, lost in what was the procedure in something like this. “I was the one that upset Grantaire, I was the one that made him cry, and then,” she tried to control herself, copying Éponine as she breathed deeply in and out.

“And then he wouldn't stop,” Marius sighed tiredly, “We tried everything, from candy to a new toy... but he only wanted you.”

“And we sent you hundreds of texts,” Éponine added from where she was keeping Cosette from hyperventilating. “And you wouldn't answer, you can't do that when you have a small boy!”

Enjolras flushed, and turned his head to hide it in Grantaire's curls. He felt bad for the three of them, but mostly for Petitaire. “I'm sorry,” he whispered to Grantaire's ear, sighing when he felt the little boy huddle closer to him.

“Marius,” Combeferre turned to their tired friend, knowing the two girls were too emotional to be objective. “What really happened?”

Marius sighed as he rested his back against the wall, looking down at his hands. “He was starting to get tired, he had walked most of the time we spent shopping,” he looked quickly at where his girlfriend was starting to calm down in Éponine's arms. “He was starting to get cranky, asking about Enjolras whereabouts,” he ran a hand through his hair, “we took him to eat, and as cranky as he was he started to complain, and he wanted dessert before his food.” 

“And?” Enjolras asked as he tried to see if the immobile Grantaire in his arms was asleep.

“And Cosette might had told him he wasn't being a good boy, that he was being naughty,” he sighed, looking at Combeferre with a lost look. “And that was all it took, he started and we couldn't stop him so we came here, to try and get him to sleep... but he kept on crying!”  
“He's asleep now,” Combeferre pointed at the toddler whose eyes were closed, still gripping Enjolras close. “Take him to bed?”

Enjolras nodded and disappeared into his room, closing the door behind him. “Everyone calm down,” Combeferre as usual was the voice of reason, the calm to Enjolras's storm. “We're just getting used to dealing with a toddler,” he sighed as he gave Éponine and Cosette a small smile as the looked at him from the couch. “We'll have to learn though.”

The other three nodded, Éponine standing and pulling Cosette up with her. “We were going to finish shopping after his nap, we got him clothes but we think he's going to need some toys and maybe a carrier, since he's still rather small for long trips.” 

Combeferre nodded, moving to open the door as he saw the three of them start to pick up their scatted things. “We left the bags in Enjolras's room,” Cosette said, sniffling as she stood in her toes to kiss Combeferre's cheek. “Good luck.”

Combeferre nodded, shaking his head as he closed the door behind them and made his way towards the closed door of Enjolras's room. He opened it slowly, trying not to cringed as it made a horrible creaking noise, only to sigh and shake his head at the picture in front of him. Grantaire asleep on top of an also asleep Enjolras, his tiny hand still clutching the older man's shirt and his thumb in his mouth as he snored lightly; meanwhile Enjolras was burrowing his nose in the boy's curls, while both of his arms were around him protectively. 

He was shaken out of his stupor when he heard Courfeyrac open the door loudly, he didn't even let his friend do anything but drop the files they had left behind for him to order and dragged him off to finish the shopping the trio had left unfinished. 

Combeferre and Courfeyrac had been back for about half an hour when surprisingly it was Grantaire who came out of the room first. He was tiptoeing out of the room, jumping slightly as the door cricked and smiling brightly at the two men as he noticed them in the couch.

“Hello there!” Courf said in his usual over excited voice, laughing when Grantaire put his little finger up and scolded at him telling him to use his 'indoor voice' cause 'ras was sleeping. Combeferre looked up from what he was reading, chuckling as he saw the still butt naked baby Grantaire parading around the apartment. 

“Aren't you cold Petitaire?” Combeferre said with a smile, still chuckling as the small boy frowned and shook his head. “Don't you want to see some of the clothes we got you?” He was not above lying, there was no way he was mentioning Cosette to him right now. Grantaire just shrugged, biting his bottom lip as he looked down from Combeferre's gaze.

“Come here Petitaire,” The boy did as Combeferre said, still not talking but starting to look a little exited as Courfeyrac passed Combeferre a couple of bags. By the time Combeferre was almost done looking through the things in the first bag, he felt as Grantaire's little hands gripped his thigh as he stood in his tiptoes to try and take a peak. “Do you like this?” He pulled out a onesie, one he was sure Marius had chosen.

Grantaire's smile was all he needed as an answer. He picked up some underwear, stamped with different Disney's characters and opened them. Slowly, and explaining everything to the little boy Combeferre helped him get dressed. “Can I do it?” Grantaire finally spoke when Combeferre was ready to zip him up. With a smile he motioned to Grantaire to do so, and with a little help the boy was finally dressed. 

“Wow,” Grantaire muttered as he looked down at the green fleece onesie he was wearing, grinning as Courfeyrac pulled the hoodie over his messy curls. “I'm a froggy!” He yelled, forgetting about indoor voices and sleeping people. 

Enjolras was rather shocked when he left his room only to be encountered by a couple of hopping grownups and a rolling on the floor laughing toddler.


End file.
